SpaceX's Dragon Space Capsule Visible in Southern Night Sky by Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist Date: 02 March 2013 Time: 10:21 AM ET inShare SpaceX's Dragon space capsule is seen from a camera aboard its Falcon 9 rocket after separating from the booster following its March 1, 2013 launch. [Pin It] SpaceX's Dragon space capsule is seen from a camera aboard its Falcon 9 rocket after separating from the booster following its March 1, 2013 launch toward the International Space Station on the second cargo mission for NASA. The spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., at 10:10 a.m. ET. CREDIT: SpaceX View full size image The private Dragon space capsule launched by SpaceX on Friday (March 1) is chasing the International Space Station, giving stargazers in the Southern Hemisphere a chance to spot the two spacecraft in the nighttime sky tonight. SpaceX's unmanned Dragon capsule was slated to arrive at the space station early today (March 2), but a thruster glitch on the spacecraft (which has since been fixed) delayed that plan to no earlier than Sunday, extending the spacecraft sighting opportunities for stargazers. When the two spacecraft finally meet, the space station's robotic arm will grapple Dragon and attach it a connecting port. Both spacecraft will then appear as a single bright moving "star," weather permitting. But while the two vehicles remain separated from each other, it will give ground observers an opportunity to watch the SpaceX Dragon capsule and the International Space Station visible as separate entities, appearing as moving lights sailing across the twilight sky.

SpaceX's Dragon space capsule is seen from a camera aboard its Falcon 9 rocket after separating from the booster following its March 1, 2013 launch toward the International Space Station on the second cargo mission for NASA. The spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., at 10:10 a.m. ET. CREDIT: SpaceX View full size image

The private Dragon space capsule launched by SpaceX on Friday (March 1) is chasing the International Space Station, giving stargazers in the Southern Hemisphere a chance to spot the two spacecraft in the nighttime sky tonight.
SpaceX's unmanned Dragon capsule was slated to arrive at the space station early today (March 2), but a thruster glitch on the spacecraft (which has since been fixed) delayed that plan to no earlier than Sunday, extending the spacecraft sighting opportunities for stargazers.  
When the two spacecraft finally meet, the space station's robotic arm will grapple Dragon and attach it a connecting port. Both spacecraft will then appear as a single bright moving "star," weather permitting.

But while the two vehicles remain separated from each other, it will give ground observers an opportunity to watch the SpaceX Dragon capsule and the International Space Station visible as separate entities, appearing as moving lights sailing across the twilight sky.